This opening verse of the prophecies of Daniel has a resounding similarity to the opening verses of most of the preceding chapters of the book of Daniel. Like them, it places the vision in a context, we are shown the point of our regeneration at which the Lord is directing us: the first year of Belshazzar, king of Babylon.

In the internal sense, time is an indication of state. This means that the events and prophecies of Daniel do not follow in a strict chronological order, but rather happen on different levels at the same time. While Nebuchadnezzar is king of Babylon, representing selfishness in our inner self, Belshazzar rules our outer self. The work of overcoming selfish motives has to go hand in hand with the removal of that very selfishness in our external—otherwise the exercise is purely intellectual. Daniel’s visions in the last six chapters of the book, indicate the process by which we become aware of the effects of selfishness in our daily lives: when Belshazzar is king.

In spiritual development, we sometimes delude ourselves that change follows effort without delay. Nothing could be further from the truth. Our habits are very powerful—often we are not even aware that we have them. Yet "regeneration" literally means "re-birth," which entails casting out each and every obstacle in the path of our spiritual development. This can only be done by examining the exterior motives in our lives, and getting to the very bottom or root of our behaviors.

Daniel’s vision traces this exploration for us. Each of the four beasts he saw rising up from the sea depict the states of an evil life in us, with the added twist in their relationship to the religious principles a person purports to hold. Each must be examined and rejected. Every detail of the vision, therefore is important.

As with all numbers in the Word, the number "four" has a special meaning vitally important to the exposition. "Four" represents a joining together, and so has the same meaning as the number "two," (Arcana Coelestia 1686, 9103, 9601) which is obvious since "four" is the result of two multiplied into itself.

In a general sense, when the term "four winds" is mentioned in the Word, it means "all things of good and of truth, thus all things of heaven and of the church" (Arcana Coelestia 9642:10) flowing into a person, for "wind" means the influx of life from the Lord (Apocalypse Revealed 343). Thus the Lord breathed life into Adam in the Garden of Eden, and again on His disciples, filling them with the Holy Spirit. In an ideal situation, the presence of the Lord, both in our will and our understanding, in equal measure, indicates a state of regeneration. In that state, we are as "four-square" as the New Jerusalem.

As in so many cases in the book of Daniel, the symbolism needs to be reversed in order to see its full meaning. Daniel is in Babylon, a servant to the king, and thus anything usually relating to the Lord is inverted to relate to the king of Babylon, as selfishness: the opposite of love to the Lord.

The influx then is not goodness and truth, but evil and falsity, specifically love of self and control over others. The "sea" in this vision depicts the great restless tide of selfishness controlling our external being. The book of Daniel is a picture of a person whose conscience is restricted to thoughts and feelings, yet whose behavior, attitudes, and habits still reflect the old states of selfishness (Apocalypse Explained 316). Babylon reigns. In the vision that follows, the states and their effects are revealed.

The vision of the four beasts coming up from the sea tells our story when we cynically misuse truth to live selfishly, until evil completely takes over and would destroy us (Apocalypse Explained 556, Apocalypse Revealed 574). Evil will succeed unless the power of the truth, in our conscience, overcomes evil and allows us to reject it.

The first of these beasts was like a lion with eagle’s wings. Lions are mentioned many times in the Word, and usually describe the power of truth to destroy falsity and evil (Apocalypse Explained 556). But in this vision, describing Babylon, the lion takes on the opposite meaning: the lion represents the power of the love of self (Arcana Coelestia 6367), and the power of falsity to destroy truths.

The eagle's wings, representing human reason, were taken away from the lion, and he was made to stand on his two feet like a man, and a man’s heart was given to him. A person engrossed in selfishness loses their ability to appreciate religion, and weighted down by their own contrary thoughts, find themselves alienated from the truth.

Next, Daniel saw a bear raised up on one side. This posture indicates our eagerness to misinterpret the Word to suit our own means (Arcana Coelestia 781). This a vision of the human state when self love (Nebuchadnezzar) rules our internal being, and the expression of that selfishness (Belshazzar) controls our daily actions. The bear is the pleasure of justifying evil with our own 'superior' reasoning.

It is easy to be kind, while manipulating other people for our own benefit. It is easy to present oneself as a spiritual being in order to deceive other people. In such a life, charity is a dead form. Thus the bear had three ribs hanging from its mouth.

Daniel never tells who commanded the bear to 'arise, and devour more flesh,' but perhaps the urging comes from deeper states of selfishness which control our external actions. Whatever its origin, these words give voice to the heart of a person misusing the Word for his or her own gain.

A leopard is "a ferocious beast" which loves to "kill harmless animals." Its very appearance, black spots on white, illustrates the effect of falsity on truth (Apocalypse Revealed 57). But the leopard in Daniel also had four wings like a bird. As in the case of the lion which had the wings of an eagle, the wings here also signify our intellect destroying the truth. The four wings on the leopard depict "confirmations of what is false" (Apocalypse Revealed 574).

The leopard not only had four wings, but also four heads. This is a depiction of human degradation when falsity rules. It is a state of spiritual insanity, for when a selfish internal acts with a falsified external, there is nothing to prevent a person engaging in all kinds evil (Arcana Coelestia 1944:3). In this state, the conscience is enslaved, powerless to stop the madness.

The fourth beast, whose appearance is not described, signifies the "destruction of truth and good" (Apocalypse Revealed 574). Once a person reaches this state of degeneration, they stop at nothing to destroy any restraining influences. Falsity is used to destroy truth through denial or twisting it to suit one’s own ends. This process is described as "teeth like iron" devouring and breaking in pieces (see ¹ explanation of Daniel 2 for a description of 'iron')(Apocalypse Revealed 556).

'A horn' is usually a symbol of power, and in the highest sense, the power of truth against falsity. But again, in this story the opposite sense applies, and the power here is of falsity for evil (Apocalypse Explained 316). These ten horns depict the complete power falsity has over the way we act.

The whole sordid description of the four beasts culminates on a little horn. This is the complete perversion of anything good and true drawn from the Word, and so represents the final profanation. If there was no counter-balancing conscience, a person would be irrevocably in hell.

The casting out of the three horns depicts the power of evil and falsity to destroy and remove the truths of the Word (Apocalypse Explained 316). The number "three" represents fullness or completeness, and thus the power of evil when brought into action to destroy all truths. Hence, the old saying 'when you break one of the Commandments, you break them all,' takes on a more powerful meaning.

The next image shifts: we see the thrones "cast down" signifying the falsities (Arcana Coelestia 8215) from the beasts, judged by the truths of the Word forming our conscience. All judgment begins with truth, for truth provides the balances upon which our lives are measured.

In the image of God’s throne, symbolizing judgment, it is important to remember that His judgment is always a product of love and mercy. But the Lord’s love should not be confused with license: just because He loves the human race, individually and collectively, this does not mean evil is permissible. Evil interferes with a person’s reception of the Lord, putting barriers between Him and ourselves. For the most part, the Lord permits evils, but does not will them, because they are useful reminding us to turn away from them (Divine Providence 275, 278). Yet there are times when human beings overstep the mark.

The judgment in this chapter must be seen in its context, which is in the reign of Belshazzar. It is the story of both the beasts and the fact that Belshazzar was weighed in the balances, found wanting, and killed by Darius. That in essence is a judgment on the external’s of our lives, on our behavior. and attitudes which have their origin in the Nebuchadnezzar states of our inner being.

Here, however, we see the origin of truth as "the Ancient of Days," sitting on the throne of judgment, heralding the destruction of one state and the beginning of another (Apocalypse Revealed 574). The "Ancient of Days" is an image of the love of the Lord (Arcana Coelestia 9470), and in a sense is the Divine counterpart to the love we are led to by means of truth. The object of all truth is to lead one to a love of God, and a love of the neighbor, and a life expressive of both. Our love for God is a reflection of His love for us.

In the Word, a garment corresponds to truth one knows and which forms a part of a person’s mind. Thus the garment of the Ancient of Days represents the truth veiling over the Divine Good. This truth is truth in our minds, in our conscious minds (Arcana Coelestia 9470, Apocalypse Explained 67). These garments were as white as snow to show us the quality of the intelligence and wisdom we can have from the Lord (Apocalypse Explained 195:18).

'Hair' means the most external parts of our lives—the natural thoughts and feelings we have which prompt us into action, all perfectly conscious. While we are in this world, this very external part of us seems to be vitally important, but in fact it is only driven by the inner things. If these are from the Lord, then our external will also appear as virgin wool.

The fire of the throne is the appearance of the Lord's love. The wheels represents the wisdom and intelligence we have from the Lord, which are full of love and so are described as "burning."

All judgment is done by the Lord. The Lord’s birth in Bethlehem was the beginning of a last judgment on the ancient churches, and that judgment from love by means of wisdom, came about through the life and death of Jesus Christ, the Divine Human of the Lord.

In Daniel’s vision, there is a similar relationship between the Ancient of Days, seated on His throne, and the Son of Man to whom was given all power. The Ancient of Days represents the Lord, and in that vision we saw the unity of the Divine love and Divine wisdom in the fiery throne upon which He sat.

Once the presence of the Lord has been established in us by the overthrow of evil and falsity, we will continue to develop in goodness and truth. This spiritual growth is described in the words that 'the Son of Man was given an everlasting dominion,' a theme repeated in verses 18 and 27. The kingdom of the Son of Man extended over "all peoples, nations and tongues," representing the different states of the human mind which will be made subject to truth from the Word. "Peoples" are the truths of doctrine—in this case, the false ideas which affect our behavior to be judged against the truth introduced into our minds by the conscience. "Nations" mean the evils of life, overthrown in the process of judgment (Apocalypse Revealed 483, Apocalypse Explained 175, 455). Thus in the process of judgment, both our habitual thoughts and feelings will be confronted by truth, and replaced by feelings drawn from the goodness and truth of the Lord. Finally, "tongues" signify the actions drawn from evil feelings and false thoughts—these too will be brought down in our personal "last judgment."

The "time, times, and half a time" are the states of temptation and combat we need to go through in order to regenerate. Yet each minute of that combat is a temptation, and temptation only takes place within the framework or regeneration. Thus a person being tempted, who resists the evil, sits in judgment on that evil, and from the power of the Lord will eventually prevail over it.

These final verses are a vision of things yet to come. This is before our entrance into the Lord’s kingdom, before the power of falsity is broken. We still have growing to do. There are still states we need to face and overcome. Even with this marvelous promise of ultimate victory, Daniel found that his thoughts still troubled him.

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179. Verse 28. And I will give him the morning star, signifies intelligence and wisdom from the Lord's Divine Human. This is evident from the signification of "stars," as being the knowledges of good and truth (See above, n. 72); and as they signify the knowledges of good and truth, they also signify intelligence and wisdom, for all intelligence and wisdom come by means of the knowledges of good and truth. It is evident also from the signification of "morning" as being the Lord in respect to His Divine Human, therefore "the morning star" means intelligence and wisdom from Him. "Morning" is often mentioned in the Word, and its signification varies according to the connection in the internal sense; in the highest sense it signifies the Lord, and also His coming; in the internal sense it signifies His kingdom and church, and their state of peace. Moreover, it signifies the first state of a new church, and also a state of love, and a state of illustration, consequently a state of intelligence and wisdom, and also a state of the conjunction of good and truth, the state in which the internal man is conjoined to the external. "Morning" has such various significations, because in the highest sense it signifies the Lord's Divine Human; it therefore also signifies all things that proceed from the Divine Human, for the Lord is in those things that proceed from Him, even so that it is He there.

[2] The Divine Human of the Lord in the highest sense is meant by "morning," because the Lord is the sun of the angelic heaven, and the sun of that heaven does not advance from morning to evening, or from rising to setting, as the sun of the world apparently does, but remains constantly in its place, in front above the heavens; consequently the sun is always in the morning there, and never in the evening. And since all the intelligence and wisdom that the angels have comes from the Lord as their sun, their state of love, and state of wisdom and intelligence, and in general their state of illustration is signified by "morning;" for these proceed from the Lord as a sun, and what proceeds from Him is Himself, for from the Divine nothing but what is Divine goes forth, and everything Divine is Himself. (That the Lord is the sun of the angelic heaven, and that from Him as a sun there exist all love, wisdom, and intelligence, and in general all illustration in respect to Divine truths, from which is wisdom, see in the work on Heaven and Hell 116-125, 126-143, 155, 156.)

[3] From this it can he seen why "morning" is so often mentioned in the Word when Jehovah or the Lord, His coming, His kingdom and church, and the goods thereof are treated of; as in the following passages, which I will cite by way of illustration. In the second book of Samuel:

The God of Israel said, the Rock of Israel spoke to me. He is as the light of the morning; the son riseth, a morning without clouds (2 Samuel 23:3, 4).

"The God of Israel" and "the Rock" is the Lord in respect to the Divine Human and Divine truth proceeding therefrom; "the God of Israel" because Israel is His spiritual church, and "the Rock" because His Divine in the spiritual church is Divine truth (See Arcana Coelestia 3720, 6426, 8581, 10580). As the Lord in the angelic heaven is a sun, and as all the light that angels have is therefrom, and as the sun there is continually in its morning, it is said, "He is as the light of the morning; the sun riseth, a morning without clouds."

[4] In David:

From the womb of the morning thou hast the dew of thy youth; thou art a priest forever, after the order of Melchizedek (Psalms 110:3, 4).

This is said of the Lord as about to come into the world; "from the womb of the morning thou hast the dew of thy youth" is conception from the Divine Itself, and the glorification of His Human thereby; "a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek," means that Divine good and Divine truth proceed from Him, for the Lord as priest is Divine good, and as king of holiness, who is, "Melchizedek," is Divine truth (See Arcana Coelestia 1725).

[5] In Ezekiel:

The cherubim stood at the east entrance of the gate of the house; the glory of the God of Israel was over them above (Ezekiel 10:19).

"Cherubim" signify the Lord in respect to providence and as to guard lest He be approached otherwise than by the good of love; "the east entrance of the gate of the house" signifies approach; "the house of God" is heaven and the church; the "east" is where the Lord appears as a sun, thus where He is continually as the morning; therefore it is said "the glory of the God of Israel was over them above."

[6] In the same:

The angel brought me to the gate that looketh towards the east; and behold, the glory of the God of Israel came from the way of the east; and the earth was enlightened by His glory. And the glory of Jehovah came into the house by the way of the gate whose face is toward the east (Ezekiel 43:1, 2, 4).

Here, in the internal sense, the influx of the Lord into those who are in His kingdom and church is described; "the God of Israel" is the Lord in respect to the Divine Human and the Divine truth proceeding therefrom; "the house of God" is His kingdom and the church; "glory" is Divine truth as it is in heaven; "to come by the way of the east into the house" means from the sun, where it is continually in its morning. (That "glory" is Divine truth as it is in heaven, see Arcana Coelestia 4809, 5922, 8267, 8427, 9429; that "the house of God" is heaven and the church in respect to good, and "temple" is the same in respect to truth, n. 3720; and that the "east," in the highest sense, is the Lord, because He is the sun of heaven, which is always in its rising and morning, consequently the "east" is the good of love from Him, see n. 3708, 5097, 9668)

[7] In the same:

The angel afterwards brought me back to the entrance of the house, where behold, waters issuing out from under the threshold of the house towards the east, they shall descend into the plain and come towards the sea, being sent forth into the sea that the waters may be healed; whence it comes to pass that every living soul that creeps, whithersoever the rivers come, shall live, whence there are exceeding many fishes, because these waters shall come thither, and they are healed, that everything may live whither the river shall come (Ezekiel 47:1, 8, 9).

Here also, the influx of the Lord from His Divine Human with those who are of His kingdom and church is described by pure correspondences. By "waters issuing out from under the threshold of the house towards the east," Divine truth proceeding from the Lord and flowing in with those that are in the east, that is, that are in the good of love to Him, is described. "The waters shall descend into the plain" and "into the sea," and "thereby the waters of the sea are healed," signifies influx into the natural man and into the knowledges which are therein; the "fishes therefrom" signifies many scientific truths in the natural man; that "everything shall live whither the river shall come" signifies that they should have life from Divine truth. That such thing are hereby signified there, no one can see except from the internal sense of the Word, yet every single expression therein involves arcana of man's regeneration by the Lord; but what is involved in each expression here will be disclosed in explainingRevelation 22:1, 2, of Revelation, where like things are mentioned.

[8] In David:

I have waited for Jehovah, my soul doth wait, my soul waiteth for the Lord more than the watchmen for the morning, the watchmen for the morning; for with Him is much redemption, and He will redeem Israel (Psalms 130:5-8).

Here the Lord's coming into the world, and His reception by those that are in the good of love are treated of. The Lord's coming is signified by "I have waited for Jehovah, my soul doth wait for the Lord, for with Him is much redemption, and He shall redeem Israel;" and His reception by those that are in the good of love is signified by "more than watchmen for the morning, the watchmen for the morning." Here "morning" in the highest sense signifies the Lord, and in the internal sense His kingdom and church; and "watchmen for the morning" signify those who wait for the Lord's coming, who are those that are in the good of love, since to those the Lord is "coming."

[9] That "morning" signifies the Lord's coming into the world and then a new church is evident from the following passages.

In Daniel:

Unto evening and morning, two thousand three hundred, then the holy (sanctum) shall be justified. The vision of the evening and the morning, which has been told, is truth (Daniel 8:14, 26). "Evening" signifies the last time of the former church, and "morning" the first time of the new church, thus the Lord's coming.

In Isaiah:

Crying to me from Seir, Watchman, ¹ what of the night? watchman, what of the night? The watchman said, The morning cometh, and also the night (D an. Isaiah 21:11, 12).

Here also the Lord's coming is treated of; "night" is the last time of the former church, and "morning" the first of the new. (What is signified by "calling out of Seir," see Arcana Coelestia 4240, 4384.) In Ezekiel:

The end is come, the end is come, the morning is come upon thee, O inhabitant of the land; behold the day cometh, the morning is gone forth (Ezekiel 7:6, 7, 10).

Here likewise the Lord's coming and the end of the former church and the beginning of a new one are treated of. In Zephaniah, where similar things are meant:

Jehovah in the morning, in the morning, He shall bring His judgment to light, nor shall He fail (Zephaniah 3:5).

[10] As "morning" signifies the Lord, His coming, also His kingdom and church, as also the good of love from Him, what is meant by "morning" in the following passages can be seen.

In David:

Cause me to hear Thy mercy in the morning (Psalms 143:8).

In the same:

I will sing aloud of Thy mercy in the morning (Psalms 59:16).

In the same:

O satisfy us in the morning with Thy mercy; that we may sing aloud and be glad all our days (Psalms 90:14).

In the same:

O Jehovah, in the morning shalt Thou hear my voice; in the morning I will set myself in order for Thee (Psalms 5:3).

In the same:

God is in the midst of her; God shall help him ² at the turning of the morning (Psalms 46:5).

In the same:

O God, my God, in the morning do I seek Thee (Psalms 63:1).

In Isaiah:

In the day shalt thou make thy plant to grow, and in the morning shalt thou make thy seed to blossom (Isaiah 17:11).

In the same:

Jehovah is ³ their arm every morning (Isaiah 33:2).

In the same :

Jehovah ⁴ hath given me the tongue of the learned; he hath awakened me every morning (Isaiah 50:4).

In Jeremiah:

I speak unto you every morning (Jeremiah 7:13; 11:7; 25:3, 4). From the signification of "morning" it can be seen what is meant by the following:

That manna fell in the morning (Exodus 16:12, 13, 21).

That Jehovah descended in the morning from Mount Sinai (Exodus 19:16);

That the priest kindled wood upon the altar every morning and placed thereon the whole burnt-offering (Leviticus 6:12). Also what is involved in the command respecting the sacrifice of the passover:

Thou shalt sacrifice the passover at the going down of the sun. Then thou shalt eat it; and thou shalt turn in the morning and go into thy tents (Deuteronomy 16:6, 7).

"They should sacrifice the passover when the sun went down," because "the setting of the sun" signified the last time of the church; that "they should turn in the morning," signified the establishment of a new church, thus the Lord's coming. These things are cited that it may be known what is signified by the "morning star," which the Son of man would give, namely wisdom and intelligence from the Lord's Divine Human. And as those who receive wisdom and intelligence from the Lord also receive Him, for the Lord is in the wisdom and intelligence that are from Him, even so that He is the wisdom and intelligence with them, the Lord Himself also is called "the Morning Star" in Revelation:

I am the root and the offspring of David, the bright and Morning Star (Revelation 22:16).

He is likewise called a Star (Numbers 24:17).

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